Christians must stand up as bridge builders, top Vatican official says

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Christians must firmly send the message that they believe in building bridges, not walls, said Archbishop Angelo Becciu, a top official in the Vatican Secretariat of State.

When asked about U.S. President Donald J. Trump’s recent actions on immigration, the archbishop said, “Certainly there is concern. We are messengers of a different culture, that of openness.”

Speaking on the sidelines of an event in Rome Feb. 1, he told TV2000, the television channel of the Italian bishops’ conference, that even though the pope also emphasizes the importance of a community’s “ability to integrate those who arrive, those who arrive in our society and culture,” it still stands that “we are builders of bridges, not walls.”